Syracuse, N.Y. -- It was a quite a moment there on Saturday evening at the old War Memorial, which has stood guard in our downtown for 62 years now and has borne witness to all kinds of good stuff from that NBA crown won by the Syracuse Nationals to Carmen Basilio's title bouts to the atomic leg drop of Hulk Hogan, his own real American self.

The Syracuse Crunch had just shattered the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 7-0 to clinch the American Hockey League's Eastern Conference championship, and the hands of the vanquished had been grabbed and shaken. But rather than leave the ice, the local skaters gathered in the middle of it, raised their sticks and saluted the roarers up there in the seats.

And they did this with gusto. Genuine, we're-glad-you're-here, come-back-and-let's-do-this-again gusto.

Was the gesture part of the game's tradition, which calls for the patrons to actually be shown appreciation by the athletes they support with their bodies, minds, souls . . . and wallets? Sure. After all, that hadn't been baseball or football or basketball on display. That had been hockey, the sport with the two-way bond.

But still . . .

The Crunch had inspired the elation. The elation had motivated the Crunch. And in the end, with the athletes applauding the folks on the other side of the glass while the folks on the other side of the glass were applauding the athletes, we were given another War Memorial Moment, capital M.

"It was a great performance by a terrific group of guys who put out a great effort every night," declared Howard Dolgon, the long-time pasha of the Syracuse franchise. "The fans were excited. It's a wonderful product to watch."

Dolgon's boys, who allowed the Penguins a total of six goals in the best-of-seven series that lasted for just five dates, are now a remarkable 11-1 in this postseason and will get their chance to rest and rehabilitate in advance of the AHL Finals that will begin this weekend in our burg's aging barn.

There are rolls, and there are rolls. And the Crunch is on the kind of roll that in another time would have inspired sonnets to be written and sung.

Take that Saturday contest. Seven to nothing? A blowout in the biggest scrum of the campaign before that semi-sellout crowd of nearly 6,000 screamers? Um . . . wow.

"Once we got a couple of goals, we just kept getting pucks in the net," said Mike Angelidis, the Syracuse captain and the kind of guy who'll block a puck with his jawbone and then just sort of shrug. "We just kept doing the little things and getting shots on net. If you look at the first three goals, they were shots from the top and tip-ins. Those were playoff goals. It wasn't like they were tic-tac-toe goals. We tried to play as simple as possible."

The result were those seven scores for the locals (including three by Philippe Paradis) and another shutout tossed by goalie Cedrick Desjardins. Grander yet, the result was a spot in the Finals for an organization that is headed there for the first . . . time . . . ever.

"You start with 30 teams and now we're going to be down to the final two," said Dolgon, the owner who had waited 19 years, the length of his proprietorship, to speak that sentence. "There's nothing more difficult than getting to the Finals -- whether it's the Stanley Cup Finals or the Calder Cup Finals. In the playoffs, with all of the physicality, it's a war of attrition out there. I know that's a cliché, but you saw it. In the end, we broke the Penguins. And now, we're one of the last two standing."

That other bunch will be either Oklahoma City or Grand Rapids, both of which hope to get the chance to prevent the Syracuse club from collecting again at center ice to bask and hold its sticks on high.

"We're one of two teams going for the Calder Cup," announced Dolgon. "Two out of 30. So, how about that, huh? How 'bout dem Crunch?"

The answer was provided there on Saturday evening at the War Memorial where hockey tradition was served. How 'bout dem Crunch? The fans' reply was loud; the athletes' response was sincere.

It may well be that the creaking building will yield a Moment, capital M, like that again. And soon.

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Here is the usual weekly “schedule of events” in Bud Poliquin’s corner of syracuse.com:

MONDAY -- By 8 a.m.: The daily column/commentary. By 11:30 a.m.: “How’d I Do?” By 6 p.m.: “Ask Me Anything” by submitting questions (to which I’ll give answers) on any sports-related topic to bpoliquin@syracuse.com. (Please include your name and the identity of your hometown.)

TUESDAY -- By 8 a.m.: The daily column/commentary. By 11:30 a.m.: “Coach’s Corner,” wherein readers can submit questions to any coach at any level in Central New York (and answers will be posted) to bpoliquin@syracuse.com. (Please include name and hometown.) By 6 p.m.: “The Video Store.”

WEDNESDAY -- By 8 a.m.: The daily column/commentary. By 11:30 a.m.: “The List.” By 6 p.m.: “E-Mail Of The Week,” wherein readers can submit legitimate essays/open letters/observations for purposes of posting to bpoliquin@syracuse.com. (Please include name and hometown.)